Hermione was lying on her bed, contemplating a mid-afternoon nap following a truly delicious lunch at the chateau, when the low chime of her magic mirror broke through the silence of her bedroom.
The little magic mirror, unlike the full length magic mirrors of yore, was actually a compact. The little red lacquered compact had been a going away present from Ginny.
It had taken Ginny finally buying it, and a matching one for herself, to convince Hermione that the method of communication was far better than the old letter and owl.
Hermione was unsurprised to find Ginny's name blinking on top of the compact, and flipping the lid open she murmured a perky hello.
"Don't you just hello me girl," the red headed witch said. Hermione could see the dirt on her face, and judging by the glimpses of dark green robes that the small mirror afforded, she deduced that Ginny had just finished Quidditch practice.
"You haven't called me in a fortnight, and that isn't like you. Something is going on. Now spill," Ginny was saying.
"It's okay. Nothing I can't handle," Hermione replied, with a huge completely fake smile plastered on her face.
Ginny's lips thinned. She turned toward a teammate off to the side saying, "I'll be in in just a bit, and yeah I still want to go for eats." Turning back toward the mirror, she said, "You're not fooling anyone, so you might as well tell me what's going on."
Hermione sighed and sat up from her reclined position. "Okay, for one, I don't really want Harry to know," rushing past Ginny's attempted protest, "I know...I know. You won't really have any intention of telling Harry, but it could come out in conversation, and two, this is something that I am still trying to figure out myself."
Ginny's mouth opened, her brows drawing together in contemplation. "Does this have anything to do with the whole Blaise thing?"
Hermione grimaced. "Not entirely, he's um...kind of...here."
Ginnys mouth dropped completely. "He's there with you now. Oooo, I'm sorry I interrupted..."
Hermione stopped her mid sentence. "No! No, he isn't here right now. Honestly, Ginny. Do you think I would answer the mirror if he was?"
Ginny giggled. "Probably not. At least I hope not, because if you did, you guys would really need to talk about some intimacy issues."
Hermione rolled her eyes. "Anyway. He is here at the chateau, and is engaged to Jacqueline."
"What the...! Oh, man. So you are avoiding him at all costs right?"
"I can't," Hermione groaned in frustration. "It's not like I can run from the room whenever he walks in. I didn't even know that Jacqueline was engaged until the first night. It was like meet, greet, oh and here is my fiancé."
"Aw, that's rough." Ginny commiserated. "So, what is Jacqueline like?"
"Jacqueline is really nice. Not at all like I would have imagined. The girl could probably have any wizard that she wanted. She kind of reminds me of Fleur. Not Veela looks exactly, but as close as a fully human witch could get. The only thing that I don't like about her is how often she gets sick. Its like she has the worst immune system in the world. When she's sick I become Blaise's default companion."
"Ooo, the plot thickens. So how is it...um...hanging out with Blaise?" Ginny asked, one brow higher than the other, just a moment for a suggestive waggle.
"I'm not shagging the bloke, Ginny and actually, it's not bad at all. He's really smart. We talk about everything: world topics, literature, art, music. You know he can sing? Well, no, you wouldn't. How could you possibly know? He has such a smoky, rich voice, but is kind of embarrassed to sing in front of others. Its adorable, really," Hermione was rambling.
She stopped mid ramble at Ginny's voice. "Oh no, Hermione."
"What?"
"You're in love with him aren't you?" Ginny said wistfully.
"What? No. We're just friends. We enjoy each other's company. Merlin, Ginny, I haven't even told him that we slept together before. Not to mention the very pertinent fact that he is engaged to my employer."
"Hermione," Ginny sighed. "Those are all very logical points, but you are forgetting something. Your heart isn't logical in the least. The heart goes where it wants. Also, you never really dealt with the realities of your night with Blaise," Ginny reminded gently.
Irritation pricked Hermione. "Well, maybe that's why I didn't call you. I didn't feel like having a heart to heart Oprah moment with you."
Just as Ginny was about to ask who Oprah was, Hermione interrupted, "Not everyone has a perfect relationship like you and Harry," she added in a caustic tone.
Hurt flashed across Ginny's face. "Okay, whatever, Hermione. My relationship with Harry is far from perfect for one. And two, I know that you are upset and you probably don't mean half of what you are saying right now, so I'm gonna let you go. I'll call back in a few days, okay?"
The mirror blinked into darkness.
All the wind had gone from Hermione's sails. She couldn't believe that she had spoken to Ginny that way. They had never really gotten into a big argument before, and whenever they had disagreements, it had never been like this.
I'm going to have to call her back and apologize soon, Hermione thought to herself.
The problem was that Ginny was right. Hermione had had her head blissfully stuck in the sand, and she hadn't wanted to face the facts.
She was in love with Blaise Zabini.
It was like the more that she got to know him, the better she liked him. Oh, he wasn't perfect by any means. He had an annoying habit of cracking his knuckles that drove Hermione insane. Also, he could be stubborn when thinking that he was right during a debate, returning to the arrogant mask she remembered from school, requiring her to tease a smile from him to smooth the look away.
It was the little things that she learned about him. The fact that he went crazy over caramels, and always had some on his person.
How he was surprisingly bashful about his beautiful singing voice.
Hermione knew that she was on thin ice, but whenever she tried to pull away, it only took one of his warm smiles to reel her back.
Jacqueline was decidedly unaware of the attraction between the two. Granted, the witch hadn't spent much time with them lately, but Hermione was amazed that the girl hadn't picked up on the vibes.
Jacqueline's behavior toward Blaise was lukewarm at best, and Hermione couldn't understand why.
Whenever the wedding plans were mentioned, Jacqueline's eyes would light up with all the excitement that was missing whenever she looked at her fiancé.
A custom wedding dress, aqua bridesmaid dresses the decision between wearing her hair up or down. Antique crystal goblets designed by Sidhe princesses. Real Slyhs to carry fairy lights at a night time wedding? It was enough to drive Hermione mad.
It was partially that lack of emotion on the witch's part that had allowed Hermione to push back her guilt while spending time with Blaise.
And she had spent entirely too much time with Blaise, even coaxing the wizard into seeing a showing of the Muggle film Casablanca in town. They had shared a large bucket of hot buttered popcorn, and Hermione had egged Blaise into drinking a coke, giggling at his look when the fizz hit his taste buds.
Blaise had loved the film, his only critical comment being, "If I were Rick, I never would have let Ilsa go. Maybe that's selfish, but there it is," he had said, his dark eyes looking into hers.
Hermione had known then that she was in over her head.
Excitement thrummed through her veins. She walked through the dense woods in back of the chateau.
It was late afternoon, but the sun was still brightly shining and warming the grass in the clearing where she was headed.
Once she reached the wildflower strewn glade, her brow crinkled in confusion. Everything was there. The blanket, basket, it was all there. He was noticeably absent.
Suddenly, she was pulled into his embrace. He simply hugged her for a moment, before drawing her lips into a passionate kiss.
How she loved his kisses.
He nipped at her lips before easing back.
"I didn't think that you were going to make it."
"It wasn't easy, but you know that I would do anything to see you."
He smiled. "Come, have something to eat. I have your favorites."
They sat on the blanket, and he fed her olives, cheese, and soft white bread, washing it down with a nice sweet wine.
Kissing his lips softly, she reclined in total contentment.
"It's getting harder to come and see you," she said, one arm over her eyes blocking the bright sun. "They are starting to get suspicious, and I don't know what to say one day to the next."
He pulled her from the blanket and to his strong chest, resting his head in the crook of her neck, he murmured, "Why don't you just tell them the truth? That we are in love. Are you ashamed?"
"Oh, No. Never. I'm scared, Charles," Jacqueline said looking into the young veterinarian's bright blue eyes. "I'm afraid for both of us. That you will lose your job and that my father will hate me. He has had this plan for me to marry into British wizarding society since I was a little girl. My mother was a debutante, and he feels that since she married into simple country gentry that I was denied something. I just want everyone to be happy, but I feel like I'm being torn apart. I'm not ashamed of you. I'm ashamed that I'm not braver. I also feel really badly that Blaise is being used in this way."
She saw the glint of jealousy in Charles's eyes, and she reached to smooth the furrow from between his eyes. "You have nothing to worry about, cheri, he is a nice man, but you are my love. I just wish that I was more worthy of you."
"I love you, Jacqueline. There isn't another woman in the world for me."
Charles had loved Jacqueline for years. First with an almost brotherly affection, and later, as she developed into a strikingly beautiful woman, into the deep romantic love that he now possessed.
At first, it was her age that stopped him. At eighteen, she was an adult in the eyes of wizarding society, but he had known her for years. He had been afraid that her somewhat flighty attitude would not bode well for a relationship, and there was the fact that he was seven years her senior and he worked for her father.
It was only after she had become engaged to the darkly handsome Blaise that he found he was unable to keep his silence. He had been astounded, when after admitting his feelings to her, she had proclaimed that she had always loved him.
In her happiness over their mutual affection, she had forgotten their predicament for a moment.
He had watched tears fill her beautiful crystalline blue eyes and his heart had ached.
"What about Blaise and my father? We have to figure something out," She had said, fat tears running down her face.
They had yet to find a solution.